Oklahoma Sooners receive unlikely support from analyst despite abysmal season under Brent Venables last year 

Paul Finebaum defended the Oklahoma Sooners as an elite football program in America despite their difficult 2024 season. An LSU Tigers fan recently called in on "The Paul Finebaum Show" to highlight the Sooners' 37-17 loss to the Tigers on Nov. 30, 2024.

The fan also tried to dismiss the Sooners' football program by claiming that Oklahoma's softball team is more deserving of being in the SEC than their football team.

However, Finebaum responded to the fan's criticism by reinforcing Oklahoma's claim as an elite football program, highlighting their success in college sports over the years.

"OU is an amazing program," Finebaum said. "I'm not going that far back. I mean, this is one of the most important programs in college history. I think they definitely belong in the SEC. I think it's not about softball, it's about football."

The Sooners have won seven national championships in college football. Their last national title win was against the Florida State Seminoles in 2001. Their poor form in recent times doesn't undermine that success.

However, Oklahoma coach Brent Venables hopes to recover from last year's struggles to lead the team to their eighth championship win.

He led the Sooners to a 6-7 record last season, ranking among the worst teams in the SEC standings. The team started strong with victories against the Temple Owls, Houston Cougars and Tulane Green Wave.

However, the Tennessee Volunteers snapped Venables' three-game winning streak in a 25-15 defeat on Sep. 21, 2024. It was all downhill from there.

The coach concluded his third year with the Sooners, suffering a 21-20 loss to the Navy Midshipmen in the Armed Forces Bowl on Dec. 27, 2024.

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Key Oklahoma Sooners players to look out for this season

Venables aims to prepare his new roster to compete against the best teams in the nation to secure a spot in the College Football Playoff. One of the players who could play a key role in his team is John Mateer.

The quarterback is expected to have the starting role over Michael Hawkins Jr. for his junior year. Last season, Mateer had 224 completions for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns, playing for the Washington State Cougars.

Another player to look out for this upcoming season is running back Jovantae Barnes. He led the team in rushing yards last year with 122 carries for 577 yards and five touchdowns.

Venables was also able to retain Deion Burks for his senior year. The wide receiver achieved 31 receptions for 245 yards and three touchdowns. Burks could have more opportunities to make plays after tight end Bauer Sharp and wide receiver J.J. Hester left the Sooners after last season.